You can't trust Ed Stelmach on auto insurance
February 26, 2008
You can't trust Ed Stelmach on auto insurance
PC government willing to go to great lengths to serve the needs of the
insurance industry in discriminating against victims
Edmonton - Today it was revealed that the PC government had a secret plan to
discriminate against accident victims all the way to the Supreme Court of
Canada.
And if the $4,000 soft-tissue injury cap was struck down there, the tired PC
government was just going to continue discriminating, according to court
e80a86a-a6b0-4fc3-b8dd-324556dfd8a6> documents reported in the Edmonton
Journal today.
"This government seems prepared to put themselves above the law and the
constitution," Alberta Liberal Leader Kevin Taft said. "It is actually
frightening to think that any government would ram through legislation
knowing that it is probably unconstitutional, and if the court finds it is,
they will simply find ways to work around people's Charter rights."
In 2006, Alberta's superintendent of insurance, Dennis Gartner, told the
Alberta Insurance Rate Board: "If the court, at whatever level, or even the
ultimate level, considers the [soft-tissue cap] to be unconstitutional, that
won't be the final answer."
Gartner said the government intended to readjust the cap after being struck
down in order to "protect the benefits," The Edmonton Journal reported.
Yesterday, the PC government made an application, side-by-side with the
Insurance Bureau of Canada, to reinstate the compensation cap to protect the
industry's massive profit margin. The Court of Queen's Bench ruled the cap
violated the constitutional rights of Albertans two weeks earlier.
"Is this what Ed Stelmach means when he says he represents 'change from
within?' They aren't even making a half-hearted attempt to protect the legal
rights of victims. They are moving aggressively to deny justice," said
Edmonton-Rutherford Alberta Liberal candidate Rick Miller, and shadow
minister of finance in the last Legislature. "This government was told
firmly by the courts that they had an obligation to treat all victims fairly
and uphold the public interest, and the first thing they do is go back into
court with the insurance industry by their side to try to reimpose the cap."
PC Leader Ed Stelmach warned the court decision would result in big
increases in premiums for Alberta drivers, after the insurance industry
initially made the threat.
The Alberta Liberals have an immediate action plan in place that would
reform the Automobile Insurance Rate Board to include more consumer
representatives, disallow politically connected appointees, and force it to
hold more public forums. Out of nine current board members, only one
represents consumers. The board's current chairman, Alf Savage, is a former
president of the Alberta PC Party.
The Alberta Liberals will force the insurance industry to freeze premiums
for a year while it sorts out the PC mess left by its illegal move to cap
soft-tissue injury claims.
It's time for a change to get the job done right.
You can't trust Ed Stelmach on auto insurance
PC government willing to go to great lengths to serve the needs of the
insurance industry in discriminating against victims
Edmonton - Today it was revealed that the PC government had a secret plan to
discriminate against accident victims all the way to the Supreme Court of
Canada.
And if the $4,000 soft-tissue injury cap was struck down there, the tired PC
government was just going to continue discriminating, according to court
e80a86a-a6b0-4fc3-b8dd-324556dfd8a6> documents reported in the Edmonton
Journal today.
"This government seems prepared to put themselves above the law and the
constitution," Alberta Liberal Leader Kevin Taft said. "It is actually
frightening to think that any government would ram through legislation
knowing that it is probably unconstitutional, and if the court finds it is,
they will simply find ways to work around people's Charter rights."
In 2006, Alberta's superintendent of insurance, Dennis Gartner, told the
Alberta Insurance Rate Board: "If the court, at whatever level, or even the
ultimate level, considers the [soft-tissue cap] to be unconstitutional, that
won't be the final answer."
Gartner said the government intended to readjust the cap after being struck
down in order to "protect the benefits," The Edmonton Journal reported.
Yesterday, the PC government made an application, side-by-side with the
Insurance Bureau of Canada, to reinstate the compensation cap to protect the
industry's massive profit margin. The Court of Queen's Bench ruled the cap
violated the constitutional rights of Albertans two weeks earlier.
"Is this what Ed Stelmach means when he says he represents 'change from
within?' They aren't even making a half-hearted attempt to protect the legal
rights of victims. They are moving aggressively to deny justice," said
Edmonton-Rutherford Alberta Liberal candidate Rick Miller, and shadow
minister of finance in the last Legislature. "This government was told
firmly by the courts that they had an obligation to treat all victims fairly
and uphold the public interest, and the first thing they do is go back into
court with the insurance industry by their side to try to reimpose the cap."
PC Leader Ed Stelmach warned the court decision would result in big
increases in premiums for Alberta drivers, after the insurance industry
initially made the threat.
The Alberta Liberals have an immediate action plan in place that would
reform the Automobile Insurance Rate Board to include more consumer
representatives, disallow politically connected appointees, and force it to
hold more public forums. Out of nine current board members, only one
represents consumers. The board's current chairman, Alf Savage, is a former
president of the Alberta PC Party.
The Alberta Liberals will force the insurance industry to freeze premiums
for a year while it sorts out the PC mess left by its illegal move to cap
soft-tissue injury claims.
It's time for a change to get the job done right.
Trackbacks
No Trackbacks
Comments
Display comments as Linear | Threaded